Through Dragon's Eye
by Arty-Z
Summary: Author's Notes: The basic plot of Through Dragon's Eyes, is the plot of Final Fantasy 7, but it adds my own twists and spins on things.


Chapter 1:

Flower Girl Of The Slums

I sat in that church, for hours on end, for the third day in a row. Waiting for her, the flower girl of the slums. I would wait for her every day, to talk to her about things. As I slapped my hands against my slightly loose black leather pants, I stood up looking to the flower patch in a hole in the floor of the church. Sunlight would shine through the roof from a hole that was there as well. I walked towards the small field, my heavy black army boots clicked on the bare wooden floors, and the chains looping through the pockets and belt loops of my pants rattled together. I placed one of my hands on the hilt of one of my katanas suspended at my right hip, the other katana hanging freely from my other side. The white, ankle long over coat I was wearing suddenly got very heavy as it covered my skintight black shirt. The coat it self was adorned with many glyphs, most I knew what they were, others remained a mystery.

I sighed as I muttered"She's gone, where is she"

At the instant the last syllable left my lips, I heard the clicking of another pair of boots. I turned slowly, keeping one hand on my katana handle. The boots belonged to a feminine figure, whose straight brunette hair reached well past her back, down far enough to tickle her thighs. The only thing holding her locks in place was a red ribbon tied in a simple knot near the end of her strands of hair. Her ruby eyes were watching, analyzing me to the last detail. A white cotton tank top hugged her chest tightly, as a set of suspenders helped to hold up her black leather mini skirt that stopped a bit before mid-thigh while her taught stomach was revealed in the opening between the two articles of clothing. Her boots seemed similar to mine, but hers had one slight addition. A metal plate sat on the outside edge of both boots, adding a little more force to her kicks. A pair of leather gloves adorned her hands both showing off pieces of various materia.

Curious as to her visit I asked"Do you know her too"

The woman's eyes peered into mine"Know her? Know who"

"The flower girl of the slums, the one who grew all these wonderful flowers" I answered sweeping my hand, motioning to the patch of flowers behind me.

"You know Aeris as well" Her eyes widened in surprise"Do you know where her house is? Please tell me! Come and tell the group"

"Ok, number one, calm down. Two, yes I know her, and three, why? How do I know you don't work for that group of jerks, the Turks" I stated calmly.

She looked at me in disbelief, and then shook her head"You know about the Turks too" She shook her head again"Never mind, the Turks already have her"

It was my turn to gawk in reaction to what she had said"What? That's it! I'm going Shin-Ra HQ"

"Good idea, but you'll need help. Why don't you join us? We're looking Aeris' house to inform her mother and rest. Then we're going to head out to the HQ of Shin-Ra" The young woman's eyes pleaded with me.

I nodded"Alright but first, who are you"

"Tifa Lockhart, Owner... or former owner of Tifa's 7th Heaven."

"Ah... Marlene's mother I assume"

She blinked at me unsure how to take it"No, her mother died years ago..."

I looked down regretting what I had presumed"Oh,.. I'm sorry to hear that."

"Well, I told you who I am, how about telling me who you are"

"Right, I'm Artinnia Zander Beoulve, former mercenary."

"How about I call you Arty Z"

"Alright, I suppose."

"Come on, you need to meet the others" She motioned for me to follow as she started walking out of the church"Well come on" She turned her head smiling at me before continuing to walk out of the building. I followed her, giving one last look at the Flowers of Sector 7.

Leaving the building, I met two men standing outside, questioning Tifa. "You awright? You was in there a long time." A muscular dark-skinned man asked her. His short cut flattop hair and equally short beard and mustache looked rough and hearty. The man's dark brown army vest had many holes in it, from bullets I would assume. The forest green pants hanging off his hips seemed baggy and held on only by a belt of coarse leather. The heavy brown hiking boots he was wearing had obviously seen a lot of use. The most defining feature of this large man was his right arm. Instead of the regular hand I was expecting, I saw a gun-arm grafted into its place.

"Yeah, we were starting to get worried" The other male stated, his blond hair spiked but slightly resembling a Chocobo's feathers. His garb seemed oddly like mine, except he didn't have an over coat and his boots were like the other man's. The revealing color of Mako Blue was set in his eyes, showing he was at one time a member of SOLDIER.

The two men noticed me after they stopped asking Tifa a barrage of questions about what happened.

"Hey! Who's this fool" The muscular man named Barret asked, readying his gun-arm.

"Wait, Barret! This is Arty; He knows Aeris, and her mother. I asked him to take us to her house." Tifa interrupted Barret.

"Hm... I'm not sure about this Tifa" The blond haired man, I found out to be named Cloud, commented.

"Cloud! Arty, Please don't mind them, they're over protective." Tifa responded.

"It's alright Tifa, I understand where they are coming from." After introductions and a brief talk of how Tifa and I met, I led them to Aeris' House. "Please... let me go first, her mother knows me." I asked.

Tifa smiled and said "Sure, Arty" while the other two simply nodded.

I opened the front door, softly yelling into the house"Miss Gainsborough" I slowly walked in through the door, closing it behind me"Miss Gainsborough"

"Ye-es" A voice came from up stairs.

I smiled recognizing her voice"It's Artinnia, Ma'am. Can you come downstairs"

"I'll be there in a minute" Her voice came from the next floor.

I opened the front door again"You can come in, guys, and Tifa."

Miss Gainsborough started down the stairway, her light green dress, and long brown hair softly flowing behind her. "Oh, Cloud you're back" She vocalized noticing my companions. "Arty... It's about my Aeris, isn't it"

I nodded, my eyes avoiding hers"The Turks, and in essence Shin-Ra, have her..."

"I knew it... Especially when Tseng showed up here, demanding Aeris come with him. She had a child with her."

Barret chimed in"Marlene's here? Where? Where is she"

"First, what kind of father are you? Leaving a young girl like that all alone! You should be ashamed of yourself" Miss Gainsborough raised her voice.

Barret's hard exterior finally cracked, as his vision lowered"I-I know, I don't wanna be away from her, but I gotta fight y'know? I'm fightin' for the Planet, and...her future."

Miss Gainsborough let out a soft sigh"Alright, if I were in your shoes I'm sure I would fully understand. She's up the staircase, the first door on the right."

Barret took Miss Gainsborough's hand giving it a gentle squeeze"Oh, thank you,..." He showed his appreciation then quickly ran up the staircase.

"I'm sorry, Miss Gainsborough,... I failed to protect Aeris, I should have been here." I apologized.

"Oh, Arty, don't beat yourself up! Aeris would've gone with him just to protect Marlene" Miss Gainsborough admitted.

"But still"

"Hush Artinnia! You still sound as immature as you really are, nineteen year-old rascal."

I lowered my head, her words cutting like knives, as true as they were. She was right though, Aeris would have gladly given herself up, even if I were there. Cloud followed Barret upstairs as I looked to Tifa. She had a bizarre look on her face.

"Something wrong" I asked.

"No, no,... you just look older than you really are" She admitted.

"The slums'll do that, except maybe in your case, you've kept your youthful charm, Tifa."

"Oh stop it" She blushed, turning away.

Miss Gainsborough could only chuckle, shaking her head softly"You always had a way with words Artinnia."

Barret came rushing down the stairs"Miss G, I'm sorry ta do this to ya, but can you take care of Marlene, for just a bit longer"

She nodded in response"Of course, but where are you going"

"To save Aeris" Cloud's voice came from the stairway, as he descended.

"How're you going to get to the Shin-Ra's Main Building" Miss Gainsborough questioned.

"Good question, I've been pondering that as well,..." I commented.

Tifa added"And with the trains down there's no way to go by tracks."

"We don't have no airplane either" Barret kept the chain sentence going.

Cloud walked over to the China cabinet where Miss Gainsborough kept her best dinnerware, as well as a few pieces of Materia. His eyes seemed to go past the glass and past the dishes as if he were looking outside a window. Then in an instant, he closed his eyes as if he had a sever headache, and in the next, it was gone. After that odd occurrence, all he stated was simply"Wall Market."

I folded my arms, looking down, and after considering the option, nodded"It,... seems like a sound proposition."

Tifa nodded in agreement"We can stock up on supplies before heading out."

"Then it's decided. Les' go! Remember, there ain't no gettin' offa this train we're on" Barret yelled, getting his enthusiasm back.

And with that, we left for Wall Market.


End file.
